Avant/Kado

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From a Few Weeks Back

 

Cellphone pix after Wailers HOB show

Trying, A Lodge, Foot Of Snow, Saturday Night

Drinking Habits 2009

We've talked about before. Mentioned it here. Drinking. Well drinking less. We've cut back over the years, slowly.  But we still have wicked outbreaks of binges. Or frequent nights of intoxication. It was never anything in our long term health that bothered us, that never felt like an issue. So it wasn't the frequency we suppose, more the quantity. As we got a little older, mornings killed after nights of ragin' with Jack and Coke. Nights we used to brush off with a cup of coffee, now hurt like hell, lingered on for a couple days.  So here it was nearing '09 and everyone's got a resolution which gets us to thinking, what should we do. And cutting back is something we are always thinking about. So '09 is going to be a year of less drinking, much less.  We know it's going to be hard. Much of our existence, our persona, our social life focuses around the booze.  But it's for our health - mental and physical and maybe peace of mind.

So we went to a bar - a just-to-drink bar, no show - on Saturday with the whole gang. (see picture) It was hard to just sip on a couple beers all night while everyone else was getting zooted. Even harder when the young guys are buying shots, egging you on to have some, bringing age and manhood into the equation. (in a good natured inebriated sort of way)

Minimalism Over:Pain

Random Fall Foto

We were on our way to get a movie - forgot which one

Nothing with Jodie Foster - permitless food tents on street

The camera has eyes - down Palmer square site lines

A dog sniffs a tree trunk - a women's day suffocates

Friday

It Was A Very Long Day

We've been getting up a 5AM for almost 6 months now on Fridays to go up to Loyola in Rogers Park to do our WLUW radio show, so it's nothing new. That doesn't make it much easier to rise when your used to going to bed around 2 every night (morning) and then on Thursday you try to lay off the coffee after 3 and get in bed before Midnight, so come the first alarm on Friday your not in a coma. This past Friday we had gotten a solid 4 hrs of sleep, so we weren't a total waste. It was just starting to snow, but not bad enough that the drive was slowed. The 20 minutes went by quick up Western, down Devon and then on to the side streets around Sheridan looking for the always tough parking spot. As the snow began to sheet the streets, we found a nice spot and hustled through the campus to our radio studio, always quite, dark, ready for us and music, that's all. The show went fine, the setlist was a good one, the computer in the studio was down which is a minor bother, mainly because we had a couple songs we wanted to play off the Net. Plenty of CDs for a great show, plenty of music for Chicagoland to wake up with.

The Best Sandwich

Only One Way To Describe It - Scrumptious

We can't give away the recipe because it's too good to just put out there for free. This masterpiece is sort of like a classy Philly, maybe we'll call it The Main Line. If you own a restaurant, food cart or just want to be able to make the best sandwich ever and make your friends (and enemies) frickin' mouth-watering jealous - make us an offer. This culinary invention is for sale.

We Did Party Like It Was '99

NYE in a Nutshell

There was nothing else on our mind the days leading up to NYE '99 than the Y2K scare. Ya know, all the computers were programmed on language that would be null-and-void once the year numbers flipped over to '00 and all technology would be screwed. All the media hype had us concerned. A little too concerned, but somehow we got it in our head - better safe than sorry. As the plans began to shape up for the big year end night, we made a tough (but mature for our age) decision to lay off the bottle and lay low. That's not hard to do in the smalltown. Truth is being in a smalltown, we should have known how safe that'd be if anything went down like a tech meltdown. But that never came to mind in that current perspective, so we aimed to stay low-key. All the parties seemed to be pointing that way until we found out our top two choices were going to be full of psychedelics, so any low-keyness would be offset by tripped out vibes from other party-goers because there was no way we'd be going 'through the desert on a horse with no name' on a night we wanted complete control of our senses.  We ended up at all little apartment party in the heart of town, plan of action mapped out in our head if Y2K went down, sipped on some champagne, passed up joints and hits, watched the ball drop somewhere in America and by 1:30 were on the road home. As we all know nothing happened and that was the last NYE we didn't drink until this year.  The main reason we passed up cocktail cram to end '08 was out of convenience. We were going to see Chicago Afrobeat Project at Reggies in the South Loop - a 30 min+ train trip or way-to-expensive-on-our-current-budget cab ride - so we choose to drive (about 20 mins) and let everyone else have the comforts. It was worth it. The night was crush - from CABP to a party with some fun friends in Humboldt Park - we had as much fun as if we drank.  We'll let the pictures do the job of telling the nights story. Happy '09.

Holiday Haze

The Christmas Times Zip Along

We took off Tuesday morning via the Blue Line instead of Monday night like we'd intended because out car was iced in. Never before had it been impossible for us to get out of a parking space, but after 2 hours of shoveling, slamming the gas only to spin tires on slabs of ice, we knew we were stuck. Lucky for us the South Shore can take us from Downtown to Hometown in just over 2 hours.  A rapid trip to the Loop on Xmas CTA emerging into the glassy configurations of so many building packed in, rising high, new snow falling for a little while, the SS train was packed of course and we took our seats, made phone calls, chat, then crash for 15 minute naps until South Bend.  Once back in Indiana it's the Holidaze straight on - lunch at local cafe w/ Dad and Grandma, smooth jazz backdrops, Hood Milk lattes and conservative simpletons a flutter. Next we got to 1st meal, homemade supper of Midwest staples family food - fresh, carbolicious - mashed potatoes, pork, green beans, stuffing and wine, oh there was some wine. Then it was movie time - #1 the Simpsons (rating - B-) followed by Elf which we'd some avoided for 4 years. (C+) Then we slept, a good, warm, fluffy bed sleep until noon with a biscuits and gravy breakfast to make North Mississippi Mama's mouth water and we went for a chilly brisk decent walk across country subdivision streets

Pictures and lots more pictures - plus more after a click

60 Degree Christmas

Poetry is written by us on a whim - Passing the banging windows - enclosing lights seen dim - Warm weather Holidays - melting the glaciers within - Puddles of slush cease to sink in

Negative 33, What?

Wicked Winter Hits

It didn't matter what the temperature was, (negative 30 something with wind chill by some accounts) we wanted a movie and the walk to Blockbuster was going to happen. 2 shirts, a jacket, a ski parka, 2 pairs of pants, 2 sets of socks, 2 hats and a scarf and we were out the door and crunching toward our movie. The chill whipped us the second we got out the door, it was sunny out, calm in a winter sort of way, but deserted for 2 in the afternoon, a couple cars able to get to the roads and few snowmen souls on their way from work. The smell of the icicle air through our beard reminded us of the Super Bowl two years ago, when the Bears played the Colts and the night before it was similar weather and a friend in town braved the cold with us to walk 12 blocks to a bar with the deal we wanted and our beards covered in ice-drops even with scarves, but we made it and the weather of today stood out the same .The slush that was sloppy 2 days ago was now solid, jagged, stiff, uneven.

Saturday Night

Lethargic Holiday Lull #1

There was snow-slop all over and we don't drive often, but circumstances dictated from LoganSq to West Rogers Park aka Devon for Xmas dinner party at the apartment of good old friends. Traffic slide slow up Western just after we had went into the Home Depot to worship all the sparkling tools and ideas and dreaming of being abodeowners, looking up in the big skylights of the home-improvement-castle just trying to find a shovel and salt to have in the trunk of the car in case we found ourself 3 feet deep in snow unable to get out and drive to some place special. Back on Western - no one wants to chance speed as it might lead to accidents (etc.) except that one idiot who weaves in and out of the glushy-murk-now black-slime still sitting on the street. We go with the traffic flow, content to talk about making films, Xmas plans and whats new at the Dank Haus.  Up near Devon we slam the car over snow piles into a parking spot questioning if we'll be able to get out later, already forgetting the slick-shovel in the trunk. Now to the apartment, so toasty warm and the new puppy Bodi barks and then sniffs and then sleeps as we pour glasses of German wine from the Office Holiday Party and pour more of our $4 buck muck and toast to good things.

Neon Slush

Neon Slush

A Pic From The Past

BSU Champions Weekend

All Sports Weekend - Smalltown, IN

Its has been a tradition for years now that on various big sports weekends we travel back to our second home in Indiana and gather up the posse from near and far for the events. It all started in the Fall of '03 on a Saturday night at the Lake Chillabrewski Lodge for a Notre Dame/USC football match and a World Series game. Since then we've gathered in Smalltown, IN - usually at the Lodge or nearby - for IU basketball, the Super Bowl, March Madness and maybe an NFL/College pigskin back-to-back. We choose to gather in Smalltown because it is a central spot, the posse can all stay at the Lodge and for some of us it's where we grew up/still have family. This weekend we also gather under another commenality - school. Ball State is where many of us went to school/meet/grew friendships and we've kept that connection strong through the years. The Cardinal football team is having its best year ever and besides making the trip to Muncie for Homecoming, in some capacity we've joined with others to watch 3 other games. (we're taking advantage since it's a once in a decade season) On Friday BSU goes against Buffalo in the MAC Championship Game in Detroit. We're starting off the weekend either at the Lodge or here for the Cardz game, then Saturday will continue on with IU/Notre Dame B-ball.  With a group gathering, we also plan to frequent some of our fav spots for food and beverage as well as this tempting vice we can't seem to avoid. It's gonna be a smash(ed)ing weekend.

#34

We get some stuff up here every once-in-awhile mainly because we spend so much time over here. Anyway - enjoy.

Untitled Wisco